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At the far side of the second floor in the stationary shop, there is a room where the door is spelled, but not locked. Very few are allowed through the magic - Syrie himself and the Tale Children are generally the only ones allowed in the room at any time. Even Huni cannot get into this room without Syrie dropping the barrier.

Inside the room is larger than it looks like it should be, and it's more like a small apartment than a study. This is where Syrie does most of his work - bookkeeping, etc, and there are dusty shelves filled with ancient and newer tomes; inkwells, pens, pencils, loose papers, and any number of odds and ends. There is also a futon far in the back, behind a curtain that can be drawn shut; as well as a small couch and table.

As the "Father" of the shop, Syrie feels a special connection with each of the Tales, and likes to keep himself open to talk to them whenever they require it.

Be it love, life, or just...wanting to talk - his door is always open to them.

Currently, he's worried for Linneas and Huni - the boy had been...changing lately, and Huni seemed at a loss with what to do. But Syrie saw deeper than that - Linny had always been a wonderful son, so he must be feeling so very strangely to behave that way, and he wanted to talk to the boy - perhaps help him through this trying time.

Linneas knew that his mother had told him not to disturb Uncle Syrie whenever he was working. But he had also seen the note the kitsune had left for Huni. That was permission enough for the boy as he ascended the stairs for Syrie's study. He had never gone in before, mainly because he was told it was off limits, but also because he didn't want to be a bother to the kitsune.

Softly, he knocked at the door, announcing his presence as he entered.

"Uncle Syrie?" he called out quietly.

Pencil firmly set in teeth, ears back, the kitsune's fingers flew over the keys of a small laptop computer as Linny peaked in; he smiled and nodded his welcome, pausing to remove the pencil from his mouth.

"Linneas...come in my boy, come in." Syrie's tone was warm, welcoming; and he offered red head some tea. "I was hoping you'd come by...."

"You were?" the boy squeaked, it was an unnerving thing, being expected, at least he found it to be unnerving. It was something in the back of his mind but it always remained just out of reach. He ignored the feeling for now, and went further in.

"Um, Uncle Syrie, I sorta wanted to ask you a question..." he began shyly.

"Yes...well...sort of." He chuckled a bit, and gave the boy's arm a gentle squeeze.

The kitsune tilted his head, and gave Linny his full attention. "Yes? I'll answer it if I can.."

"Did... did you ever get the feeling that everything you did was wrong? That even if you don't do anything it's still wrong?" Linneas began, his golden eyes stared into the kitsune's.

The boy certainly didn't ask easy questions, now did he!? Syrie frowned a bit, and then nodded slowly. "There are days I feel that way..yes...but..you feel like that all the time?"

"It didn't used to be like that before. But when the dreams started coming more and more often, and they became clearer and scarier..." Linneas' lower lip trembled, but he continued. "Sometimes I see a girl, blonde with lilac eyes, and she just stares at me, like I'm some sort of monster. Then she starts to scream at me, she just hates me, and even though I don't see anyone else, I feel that everyone around me hates me."

Linneas swallowed, trying to calm himself, trying to remember that these were just dreams. And nothing more. He couldn't tell Huni about these dreams, not because he felt like she wouldn't help him, but because... because it was a woman in his dreams that hated him so much.

"Is this... normal? Does everyone go through something like this, Uncle Syrie?"

Now that was certainly interesting...the kitsune frowned a bit; pondering how to put it - the boy's dreams were likely something held over from the Tome's magic, and Huni's subconscious...as those were the things that created the boy in the first place.

"Nightmares are unfortunately a very common part of life Linny...but I don't know if what you're experiencing are nightmares...or just something born from the Tome, and your link with it." He could speak frankly with the redhead about the Tome, because unlike some of the Tales, the boy knew where he came from.

He drew the boy closer, one slender hand on the child's arm - no, he couldn't think of Linny as a child..the boy was growing...yes, the largest growth came when the magic of the Tome kicked in and they aged literally overnight...but the children DID grow... here the boy already had the lanky build of a budding teen. Syrie would treat him as such.

"What you need to know, Linneas, is that no one hates you - and your dreams are echoes from the past. Whomever that woman is...she can't really touch you now. I know it's hard to forget the nightmares...but I promise it can be done."

How did he know? Because, he did the same thing nightly. Syrie's past was as sordid as they came, only..he couldn't remember it save for when he was sleeping!

"How can you be sure? How can anyone be sure? What if the Tome will summon another Author and then whoever it is ends up writing that woman?" Linneas wasn't sure why he was so afraid, the woman in his dreams never really hurt him physically. She would yell, cry, and scream, but that was all...

"I don't know why I feel that people hate me. What if I was like Jiro? He said that when he dreams, he ends up elsewhere. What if I do things when I'm asleep and that's what makes people hate me?"

The russet kitsune chuffed softly at the torrent of words coming from the boy he regarded as a son. "The Tome may do that...but Linneas...remember that the Tome creates it's children from the Author's subconcious...from their response to a question - and not from it's own whims."

He wanted to sooth the boy's nerves, but he wouldn't lie or sugar coat things for him. Linneas would soon be a man, and he had a right to be treated that way.

"It does you no good to worry about the "What Ifs" son...were you to do so all the time, you'd never experience life." Now came the tough part. "You worry a lot about what people think of you, don't you?"

Linneas had wanted to say no, to deny the claim the kitsune was making. But as he opened his mouth to speak, no words emerged. Golden eyes downcast, the boy could only nod.

"Is it wrong to think that way?" he whispered. Perhaps the Tome had syphoned some of Huni's insecurities into him, but perhaps this was also Linneas' own fears and worries bearing fruit.

"Thought so...." He flicked his tail thoughtfully and shook his head. "You shouldn't worry about what everyone thinks about you so much Linneas...if you keep doing that, you'll never grow as a person. You can't please everyone, and you'll only kill what makes you you if you keep trying."

Syrie leaned forward to place his hands on the boy's shoulders comfortingly. "Maybe it's not important coming from me, but I'm going to tell you anyway.... " He took a breath before continuing. "I think of you like my own son, and I wanted to talk to you because I could see you struggling quietly to please everyone, even if it meant stifling the very things that made you unique."

"But... I like making other people happy." He reasoned, he wouldn't try to make them happy if he didn't want to, right? "I know that I can't get everyone to like me, but I'd like to think I can try. I like keeping the shop clean, I like keeping things neat and orderly... I'm happy when I see other people are happy." he had this conversation with Tybalt before, but the red head felt that even Syrie wouldn't understand.

There was a genuine desire in the boy to be of service, to everyone he has met, and to everyone he has yet to meet. But Linneas was worried that he wasn't doing a good enough job of it. And then when the dreams came, when those who made him feel that he wasn't good enough, that he would never be good enough, it scared and frustrated him.

"I'm not making sense, am I?" he added with a chuckle.

Syrie shook his head ruefully; "Or I'm not understanding well enough." He could admit it - he had a hard time relating to people - it wasn't his thing, really.

He leaned back, watching the red head thoughtfully. The woman in the boy's dream said he wasn't good enough, made him feel like he never would be...but...already Linneas was a capable young man, and very trustworthy - it was a bit past his understanding to think about why the boy would feel like that.

"Linneas...you do a wonderful job of helping your mother and I....even if we don't say so often enough....we're both extremely proud of the young man you've become. No matter what your dreams say, you're more than good enough in our eyes."

Linneas smiled at this, "Thank you, that means a lot to me." If only the kitsune or his mother could be there in his dreams, but didn't that seem like they were fighting his battles for him? And if he was indeed the capable young man Syrie said he was, he should be able to do this on his own right?

Maybe he was just scared. Of what, he didn't know. Part of him wanted to ask the woman why she hated him so much, but another part of him, the part that was stronger, more insistent would tell him to wake up, to run away and never look back. It was very distressing to Linneas as he thought of it more.

"This has been a really big help, thanks Uncle Syrie." the red head brightened. Being 'macho' was something foreign to Linneas, not to mention with his mother's constant hugs and kissses, the boy had developed a strong tolerance for affection. With this in mind, he embraced the kitsune, hoping that Syrie wouldn't be offended by this action.

As foriegn as hugs and things tended to be with the kitsune, he wasn't quite so...estranged from children. Adults yes, children...well, they were different. He hugged Linneas back., smiling fondly - he really was proud of the red-head.

"You're welcome...I don't know that I helped at all...but my study is always open to you."

The handwriting was Linneas', but the Tale would not remember writing any entry. Nor where his Tome was, for that matter. Everything else recorded within the small book was done by someone else.

RP at the Legends HQ